The Color Red
by ScifigeekET
Summary: Sequel to 'What an Anomaly Is'. The last time a strange child with a pattern on her face had shown up, the ARC was turned upside-down. So what should they do about this one, who claims to be Anomaly's granddaughter?
1. Goodbyes

"You can see her now."

Anomaly smiled. "You sound so formal, Arklio."

Her son sighed heavily. His eyes pleaded with her. "I'm sorry. It's just… I'm nervous. About her. About her future. Her life."

Anomaly placed a kind hand on his shoulder. "She'll be fine."

She walked into the other room. The grey walls stared back at her. They were always grey. There was never any more color, because the world around them would paint them differently soon enough, with moonlight and sunrises that could make a poet cry.

Raised above the floor was a small bed, enclosed in wooden bars. Sleeping inside was a tiny baby. Bright crimson glared at Anomaly from the small girl's face.

Anomaly sucked in a deep breath, lifting her tiny granddaughter out of the crib. "Red?"

Arklio nodded gravely. "I told you she was… unique."

Anomaly looked at the small girl's face, stroking it gently. She clicked her tongue soothingly as the tiny eyes opened, a deep black that glittered with a hidden intelligence.

"She's so beautiful." She whispered, pressing her cheek against her granddaughter's, stained with red.

"She's different." Arklio replied bitterly.

Anomaly shot a withering glare at him. "She's your daughter."

"And nothing matters more to me." Arklio completed for her. "But I'm scared for her, Anomaly. This world rejected you, simply because you voiced your opinion. What will happen to her in a place like this?"

"We'll find a way." Anomaly insisted. "There's always the ARC; she'd be welcome there, if all else fails."

"I don't want her living there, either. Face it, Anomaly; she'd be nothing but a freak in a place like that!"

"But she's _your _freak. What the world thinks doesn't matter."

"But I care about her too much to let her face the worst parts of humanity." He replied. "I've already done that to you; I won't let it happen to her."

Anomaly smiled softly. "How many times must I say I've forgiven you?"

"As many times as I can apologize."

Her smile widened as she turned back to the little baby in her arms. "What's her name?"

"I was thinking…Lauranai."

Anomaly smiled. "It's beautiful." She smiled at her granddaughter. "_She's _beautiful."

The baby opened her black eyes once more. A smile crept up her lips.

Anomaly chuckled. "Hello, Lauranai."

Arklio's eyes grew distant. "I won't deny it's been hard; she has her mother's eyes."

Anomaly sighed. "Tanai would have been happy for you, Arklio. She would have been proud of her child. You know that."

Arklio said nothing. The story of Tanai had been whispered through the city, the stuff of legends before it was even ten days old. The Predator attack had only been thwarted when the young woman had given her life; and her child had been saved after her death.

Many said that the red on the newly named Lauranai's pattern was the result of her mother's death. That her blood became a part of the little child, shown upon her small features in delicate swirls of crimson.

"She will be different, Anomaly. She will be hated by those who loved Tanai, and she will be loved too much by others. The life of a celebrity… the life of a freak… Lauranai will know them both."

Anomaly's pale blue eyes locked on her son's. "Tell me, Arklio. You say that those who loved Tanai will hate her. Are you included in this number?" One of her eyebrows rose.

"Never." Arklio shook his head fiercely. "I have been the cause of too much pain in this family. Never again."

Anomaly smiled very softly. "Very well, then."

For a moment, neither of them said a word. The silence was not uncomfortable; while they had once been mortal enemies, Anomaly and Arklio no longer held any arguments with each other.

Finally, Anomaly spoke up. "Do you mind if I have a moment?"

Arklio shook his head. "Not at all. I'll just… go to the other room, shall I?"

She nodded, and he left.

"Well, Lauranai." She whispered carefully to the little child. "Here we are. I'm a grandmother already."

The baby let out a small, soft, adorable little noise. Anomaly smiled at her and lifted her out of the crib once more.

"I think you need a nickname." She continued. "Your name is a little long; your friends won't like it. Besides that, your new Florlic may have a problem remembering it as well."

The baby just looked at her.

"That's right; I'm getting you your first Florlic. One of Kesea's grandchildren, no less. A little puppy just about your age."

Lauranai giggled, and Anomaly smiled, tickling her under her chin. "What? Is grandma funny? Is she?"

Lauranai laughed as Anomaly held her in the air, laughing with her.

"Oh, Lauranai. You'll grow up too soon." She sighed. "I often wonder if your father's right. If you won't be accepted. If you will be exiled, just as I was."

Lauranai seemed to sense the change in mood; her glittering black eyes were suddenly serious.

Anomaly kissed the top of her head. "Too early to worry about that, though." She sighed.

She paused for a moment, staring at Lauranai.

"How about Red?" She asked at last, speaking English for perhaps the first time in months. "Does that sound good?"

Lauranai smiled.

Anomaly smiled back. "Red. Very well, then. Your father won't be happy with me, but we won't tell him yet, will we?" She chuckled as she kissed the top of her head once more.

* * *

"I told you she was going to get her first Florlic from me. Respect that."

Arklio rolled his eyes. "Yes, mother."

Anomaly lifted the small, pure-white creature to her eye level. It was tiny now, but it would grow, along with Lauranai.

The small girl was sitting in her room, whacking a few rocks against each other. She smiled at her grandmother as she walked into the room.

Anomaly gently placed the small Florlic on the floor.

The dog sleepily opened its eyes. It yawned hugely, its wings unfurling as it did so. It shook itself off.

Lauranai let out a happy squeal and threw her arms around the little dog's throat. Instantly responding to her excitement and joy, the dog licked her face, making Lauranai laugh.

"Well, they're getting along." Anomaly chuckled.

Arklio could not help smiling as the two tackled each other, laughing –or barking, as the case may be- as loudly as they could.

* * *

**Twelve Years Later**

"LAURANAI! GET BACK HERE THIS INSTANT!"

Red grinned at her Florlic as it landed next to her. "We're in trouble this time."

The Florlic barked happily as it placed her on the ground. Normally, children were unable to ride Florlics at Lauranai's age; they were too heavy for the winged dogs to keep in the air. However, Lauranai was smaller than most, and her Florlic, Ikeila, was incredibly large.

"What did I tell you about going back in time?" Her father demanded as Lauranai skipped up to him.

She rolled her eyes. "I was just having a little fun…" She muttered.

"Oh, leave the girl alone, Arklio. She's just a kid." Anomaly came up beside her son, flipping her hair casually behind her shoulders. "I certainly got into worse trouble when I was her age."

"When you were her age, you were banished from the city, trying to survive Predator attacks." Arklio growled. "Hardly a perfect role model."

Anomaly grinned. "What _were _you doing, anyway?" She asked Lauranai.

"Making a couple Greeks believe in Pegasus." She replied, patting Ikeila on the head.

Anomaly laughed. "I often wondered if they were the source of that particular myth." She informed her granddaughter, her hand joining Lauranai's on Ikeila's head.

"You. Did. _What?_" Arklio spoke through clenched teeth.

Lauranai rolled her eyes. "It's no big deal, dad."

But there was far more to her statement than her casual tone implied. Her eyes were locked on his in defiance, though her anger was not truly directed at him.

He sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Go to your room, Lauranai. Your grandmother and I have something to discuss."

Pain flashed in her black eyes; she knew what they were going to 'discuss'. She looked at Anomaly pleadingly by reflex alone; she hoped desperately that her grandmother didn't notice.

She walked slowly to the house, trying not to run, trying to disguise her tears, burning against her bright, crimson pattern.

"Well?" Arklio asked.

"Well what?" Anomaly replied.

"You know what, Anomaly. Don't play dumb with me; it hasn't worked since I was two."

Anomaly smiled very softly, very sadly, but she seemed determined to get the question directly from him. "If you want to ask me something, ask. Don't make me guess."

He clenched his teeth in frustration. "Do you think she was lying? Do you think she really…?" His voice cracked.

Anomaly's eyes grew distant as she sighed. "I'm afraid not, Arklio. I saw one of her friends open the anomaly for her. It wasn't her doing."

Arklio let out a deep, heavy sigh. Hope seemed to drain from his features. "She seemed so… casual about it."

"She lied, Arklio. She lied because she wants to impress you. She wants you to think she can open anomalies. She _doesn't _want to be different."

Arklio sat down on the ground, placing his head in his hands.

"She went back in time, yes." Anomaly continued, sitting next to him. "She didn't want you to think that she's different, when she's still completely convinced that it'll only be a matter of time until she gains control. She's trying to convince herself more than she's trying to convince…"

Her statement trailed off as she saw a gleam of metal in the sand. She raised an eyebrow and wrapped her fingers around it.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she looked at the little object. The small camera lens looked back.

"You." She completed, then turned her gaze to Lauranai's window, where the young girl was gazing at them.

Her black eyes were full of tears as she turned away from them, closing the window behind her. Anomaly destroyed the small camera.

"How much did she hear?" Arklio asked softly.

"All of it." Anomaly replied confidently.

* * *

Lauranai shoved one outfit after another into the backpack. Her two knives were inserted into her belt, and she put an old cell phone into her pocket, attaching to it with a quick thought.

Ikeila tilted her head curiously.

"We're going, Ikeila." Lauranai said firmly. "And we're not coming back."

If Ikeila was surprised by this, she didn't show it. She turned around and gripped one of Lauranai's books, placing it in the bag, then turning to pick up a few of her clothes.

Between the two of them, packing was simple. The Florlic knew what Lauranai wanted and needed, even if Lauranai herself had forgotten.

"Red…"

Lauranai flinched as her grandmother knocked on the door. She whirled around defiantly to face Anomaly.

The metallic blue pattern surrounding Anomaly's eye seemed to mock her. It wanted to torture her. It hated her. It loathed her.

_I can open anomalies._ It seemed to be saying._ I've been able to do it since I was a child. And what can _you _do, Lauranai? Nothing. You're pathetic._

"I'm going, whether you like it or not." Lauranai snapped.

Anomaly shrugged. "Does it look like I'm stopping you?"

"You'd better not." She retorted, turning back to her bag.

Anomaly watched for a minute. "So, Red. Where are you going to go?"

"Somewhere. Does it look like I care?" She replied testily. Ikeila nudged her hand, giving her a small computer chip that was hastily deposited in the backpack.

"Well, you're going to need to go somewhere."

"You survived in the desert for six years. Who says I can't?"

"That's me. But you're not me, are you?"

"Are you saying I _couldn't?_"

"Not at all. I'm just wondering; do you really _want _to?"

Lauranai froze for the briefest of seconds before continuing with her work. "I don't want to be _here._"

"Why not?"

"Because I'm sick of being _different, _ok?"

Anomaly nodded slowly. "Ok. So you're different. You've got a bright, red pattern, and you can't open anomalies. I can understand that."

"Good. So you can get out of my way, right?"

Anomaly thought about this for a moment. "I think not."

Lauranai clenched her teeth, a habit she'd picked up from her father. "Why not?"

"Because you're not telling me the truth. You're not leaving because you're different; you're used to that. Our whole family is 'different'. So why are you _really _going?"

Lauranai didn't' say a word. She just kept packing.

"Red…?"

Lauranai sighed heavily. "I'm going… because of you."

Anomaly folded her arms and leaned back against the wall as Lauranai turned around. "Now we're getting somewhere."

"I'm leaving because of Sam. Because of you. Because of my mom." She glowered at her. "I mean, look at me! Half of my family is in our greatest legends! You, Sam, my dad, my mom! You're all _famous,_ and everyone expects me to be _exactly like you!_"

By this point, her rage had gotten the best of her. Tears were flowing out of her eyes. "The whole world expects me to be a legend, but I'm nothing but me! Little 'old Red, the girl who can't open an anomaly to save her life! I'm pathetic, worthless in their eyes! Your stories will go on in _history, _but I'll just be the name in the back of the book that _everyone forgets._ I'll never be _like you!"_

Anomaly nodded slowly. "So you want to go somewhere else. Somewhere that doesn't know your name, doesn't know who you are."

Lauranai looked at her, then gave a single, slow nod.

Anomaly smiled. "Why didn't you just say so?"

She held out her hand.

Lauranai looked at it for a moment, then took it with a deep sigh. Anomaly started walking away, with Lauranai and Ikeila close behind.

Arklio looked at them as they entered the room. His eyes were sinking in dark circles, exhaustion written in every line on his face.

"Are you certain?" The question was directed at them both.

"Yes." Lauranai replied.

Arklio turned to his mother, who nodded.

He sighed. "Very well."

Lauranai looked at Anomaly, who pointedly raised her eyebrows.

"This is the last time you'll see him for a while. You should probably say goodbye."

Lauranai looked at her father and walked over to him slowly. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I'm sorry, daddy." She whispered.

He smiled very softly. "Ah, you could never be content here, Red." He looked at Anomaly. "It's in your blood."

Lauranai swallowed; her father never called her 'Red.' "What is?"

His smile widened ever so slightly. "The stars."

He hugged her tightly for a moment, then released her. His eyes focused on Anomaly.

"Take care of her." He ordered.

Anomaly nodded. "Of course. She'll be safe with them, don't worry."

Arklio nodded curtly, smiled once more at his daughter, then walked out of the room.

"I love you, dad." Lauranai whispered.

Her vision changed as she looked through the camera she'd put in his room. She saw a tear travel down his face.

"I love you too." He said softly.

Anomaly gently tapped her shoulder. "You might want to get all of those cameras out. You may need them."

Lauranai nodded and called the cameras to her. The small pieces of technology walked slowly in her direction, and she lifted them all up, placing them in her pocket.

Anomaly smiled at her. "Time to go."

* * *

Anomaly seemed more at home in the desert than she could ever be within the city walls.

As soon as she was outside, her stride lengthened. Goose bumps traveled up her arms as the wind played across her skin. Her eyes grew more focused and clear, darting about cautiously. It seemed involuntary; more of a natural reflex than anything else.

She walked quickly, forcing herself to slow down whenever Lauranai fell behind. Despite the fact that Anomaly was already a grandmother, she wasn't very old. Lauranai never asked exactly how old she was; probably around fifty? Maybe older; but Anomaly still had a long life to live. Most people of their species lived for a hundred years- if they ever reached old age.

So she was still young enough to run quickly. Faster than Lauranai thought she could manage.

But her own self-doubt proved untrue. As soon as her feet hit the sand, it became so much easier. She started to catch up to Anomaly as time went on, and soon came to a point where she thought she'd outrun her.

Finally, Anomaly stopped. She was famous for being able to stop in a split-second, and Lauranai saw it first hand on this night.

She stopped a second too late, then reversed and met up with her grandmother.

Anomaly's metallic blue eyes were distant as she stared at the space that appeared empty. "We're here."

Lauranai raised an eyebrow. "All right… and where's here?"

Anomaly smiled softly. "Your new home."

She held out a hand before Lauranai could say anything. It was closed in a fist that slowly began to open, palm up.

A light blazed in her hand, growing bigger and bigger with each second that passed.

"An anomaly." Lauranai breathed.

Anomaly smiled. "There are some good people there. They'll help you. It may seem a little confusing at first, but you'll get the hang of things."

"There? Where am I going? What's in there?"

Her smile widened. "You'll see. It's a brilliant place. I know you'll love it."

She gestured for Lauranai to walk through.

Lauranai looked to Ikeila for support. The Florlic whimpered; she knew even less about what to expect.

She took a deep breath. "I'll miss you, grandma."

Anomaly smiled. "Miss you too, Red. But we'll see each other. Every so often, I'll come visit, all right?"

Lauranai nodded, speechless. It was all so fast, so quick. Now that the time had come, she wasn't sure she wanted to go.

She took a deep breath and stepped through the anomaly.


	2. The ARC

Lester sighed heavily.

Despite the fact that this was now the second time he had to deal with this kind of situation, he was unprepared. The last time a child had shown up at the ARC, especially a child like _this, _things had gotten… strange.

He mentally counted through all of the disastrous things that had happened while he waited for his team to arrive. He'd been held hostage at knifepoint by a strange man with a pattern on his face, had been held in the air by what seemed to be an insane teenager from the future, the entire team had turned against him when he tried to contain said teenager and _then_ they had almost become involved in an inter-species, inter-time war. On top of all that, Lester learned of a time web so intricate his head _still _hurt when he thought of it.

Another sigh escaped his lips as he walked out of the room. On the other side, Nick, Jenny, Abby and Connor looked at him in surprise.

"Ah, you're here." Lester said, using the same words he'd used so long ago. "Good."

He saw their eyebrows shoot up, much in the same way Cutter's had last time. He hoped Cutter would get the message before Lester had to continue, but apparently he didn't.

So, he went on. "We had a team investigate an anomaly that appeared last night." He sincerely hoped this wouldn't be a regular thing as he asked, "Guess what they found?"

Cutter (though he could hardly be called that anymore, seeing as he wasn't the only 'Cutter' in the ARC) seemed to recognize the pattern as Connor asked, "Nothing good, right?"

Lester looked at him. "If only it were that simple. Truth be told," His voice gained an extremely weary quality. "I'm not sure if it's a good thing or a bad thing."

Nick Cutter's eyes widened as he recognized the words; he was hardly likely to forget them, the last time they were spoken he'd received one of the greatest shocks in his life.

"Oh?" Connor asked.

"She's back?" Cutter cut in before Lester could answer.

"Not her, no." Lester replied, ignoring the confused look of the others. "Take a look."

He opened the door, gesturing for the others to go inside. They did as instructed.

Lester closed the door behind them. "Look familiar?" He asked, gesturing vaguely with one hand.

No one responded. They were all staring at the girl in the room.

* * *

Lauranai looked around the room. There were three grey walls and a mirror that covered most of the fourth wall. In front of her was a cold metal table. The room itself was bland. Too bland. Meant to intimidate and highly successful.

Worse than that was the chair she was sitting in. The back was made of cold, hard metal that was perfectly straight, with no room for human error, and the seat remained freezing no matter how long she sat there. She fidgeted uncomfortably.

The people who had brought her here had taken Ikeila from her. She felt strange without the Florlic, uncomfortable and exposed. The winged dog's emotions were always a part of her life, and Lauranai could not remember the last time they'd been separated.

The door by the mirror opened at last. A man entered the room. Lauranai studied him curiously. He was wearing a suit, stood perfectly straight, and had brown hair, streaked with grey. An expression of haughty contempt and exasperation was plastered over his face. He seemed very professional, businesslike.

She hated him already.

He placed a book on the table and spoke a few words in a language Lauranai didn't understand before sliding it towards her.

She looked at the book. It was thick and heavy, and inside were words she couldn't read.

The man said something else, gesturing to the book. She raised an eyebrow, wondering exactly what he wanted her to do.

"Nice book?" She tried, sliding the book back towards him. He pushed it back.

Irritation sparked inside her. "Look, I can't read this." She handed it back, and he pushed it towards her once more, looking angry.

"Listen, beef brain!" She snapped. "I can't read your stupid book!" She all but threw it at him this time.

Her sharp ears caught the sound of muffled laughter from behind the mirror. Her eyes darted towards it and narrowed.

* * *

Connor watched in fascination. The girl was younger than Anomaly had been; ten, maybe eleven years old. But her temper was much worse.

"Listen, beef brain! I can't read your stupid book!"

Connor laughed; he couldn't help himself. Her glittering black eyes locked on him from the other side, narrowing dangerously.

Connor was somewhat unnerved by her piercing gaze. Despite the fact that she couldn't see him, her eyes had locked perfectly on his, as though she could see through the illusion of the mirror.

He sighed. "I'll go help Lester…" he muttered to the others.

* * *

The man in the suit stood, bristling with indignation. Lauranai relaxed in her seat; if this man wanted a fight, she'd be more than his match- she didn't need to worry about it.

Another man entered the room. He was younger than the first, had dark black hair and bright eyes that all but sparkled. He said a few quiet words to the first man, who haughtily exited the room.

The newcomer sat down across from her. "Hello."

She looked at him, startled.

"Don't be afraid." He continued. "My name is Connor."

She stared at him. Either she'd suddenly learnt his language, or…

"You speak Artalian?" She inquired.

He smiled genuinely. "A little." He replied. He paused, then asked, "Could you tell me your name?"

She almost answered 'Lauranai,' but decided against it. After all, her grandmother had changed her name (twice!) when trying to start a different life. Why couldn't she?

"Red." She replied. The single word was in English. "My name is Red."

He raised an eyebrow. "So you do know English."

"English?" She asked. "No."

The other eyebrow joined the first. "But 'Red' is English."

She almost hit him on the head with the book. Her pertinence was wearing thin by this point. "I don't speak English, all right?"

He noticed her change in mood. "All right, it's ok."

Neither of them said anything for a moment while Red glowered at him.

Finally, Connor spoke up again. "Do you know what this is?" He held up the book.

"If I knew, I wouldn't have given it back." She remarked dryly.

"It's a dictionary. Do you know what that is?"

She thought about it.

And suddenly, everything clicked. The book, the cell, the man with the suit, the name 'Connor', the descriptions of the stories her grandmother told her…

"She sent me _here._" She breathed, dumbstruck. "_She sent me __**here.**_"

"I'm sorry?" Connor asked, but Red was too amazed to answer properly.

"Y-You're Connor! Connor Temple! _The _Connor!" She spluttered. She thought about the other man, matching him easily to a description Anomaly had given her. "And that was _Lester!_ _The _Lester! The one who tried to lock up Anomaly!"

She looked around the room, suddenly on her feet, pacing furiously. "She sent me _here. _Of all the places in all of time she could have sent me, it was _here._"

She looked around the room in wide-eyed wonder. "She sent me to the _ARC._"

Connor looked at her in confusion. "Who sent you here, Red?"

She turned to him. "My grandmother. Anomaly."

* * *

Connor entered the room looking somewhat pale and more than a little sick. He stumbled into a chair, dumbfounded.

"Well?" Lester seemed oblivious to his discomfort. "What did you find out?"

Connor looked at him for a moment, as though he couldn't quite believe Lester was actually there. The silence stretched on until Abby took his hand.

"Her name is Red." Connor said at last. "And she's…" He swallowed. "She's Anomaly's granddaughter."

Everyone turned to stare at the girl. She was now walking around the room, staring at every little blemish in the grey walls with child-like curiosity.

"She looks nothing like her." They were the first words out of Abby's mouth.

And she was right; Red did not have the same facial features her grandmother did. Her skin was even paler, if such a thing were possible. Her eyes were black, not metallic blue, and her hair was a long, shimmering black as well, not blonde and short.

But perhaps the main difference was also the main similarity. Red's pattern was a different color from Anomaly's, a bright red instead of a light blue. However, it surrounded Red's eye in much the same way Anomaly's had. And, though the swirls were different, and far more intricate, they also slanted somewhat upwards, traveling to the right side of Red's face. There was no small circle under her eye, however.

It seemed impossible that this little girl could be Anomaly's granddaughter. Anomaly, the child with the broken past. Anomaly, the girl who lived in the desert for six years. Anomaly, the girl who destroyed the empathic clinic. Anomaly, the girl who had torn the ARC apart and put it back together again, piece by piece, and, out of the carnage, made it so much better.

As they all watched Red, no one noticed the incredibly small cameras as they all fell away from where she had placed them on Connor. They walked out of the room, recording and watching everything as they went.

* * *

Red switched her vision to the vision of the camera; an ability that seemed unique to her. As the tiny machine traveled the halls of the ARC, completely undetected, she found herself staring at the world that came from her childhood stories. Her grandmother had been accurate down to the tiniest details; Red was able to identify each room after only a brief snapshot.

When one camera finally found the ADD, she took a proper picture. She wanted to keep this in her memory forever; the machine her grandmother had attached to, the anomaly detector!

She stared at it in fascination. She was impressed by Connor's skill; it was a brilliant piece of machinery. Though there were a few bits and bobs that could use some fixing…

She grinned as she realized she may get a chance to do exactly that. After all, she was possibly spending the rest of her life here; so long as the rest of the ARC team agreed.

One of the cameras found Ikeila, and she breathed a sigh of relief. The Florlic was unconscious, but unharmed. A team of doctors were surrounding him, placing restraints on his muzzle and around his wings, but there were no sharp, pointy objects lying around, so she figured she'd be safe enough. Still, she kept the camera trained on that spot, to update her if something went wrong.

She quickly decided to intervene before that happened. She tapped on the mirror, now aware that to the others, it was a glass window.

* * *

"Itta. Norfallo. Kreaka Ikeila, tek Florlic."

Connor listened to the words carefully, then translated. "She wants to know where her Florlic is."

Lester rolled his eyes. "Tell her it's safe. Just sleeping."

Connor pressed a button, and the speaker inside the other room answered with his voice. "Kika. Lelue istari."

Red rolled her black eyes. "Orrtaras. Ek neiktatai?"

"Obviously. But are you going to hurt her?" Connor translated.

"No."

"Nortalia." Connor replied.

Red froze. "No?"

Connor raised an eyebrow. Red rapidly launched into another question.

"Iririti. Tellok tetrei lilak kiroa nortkana. Treikts."

"Treikts?" Connor asked, dumbfounded.

"What?" Lester demanded.

"She thinks she knows what 'unlocks' the English." When the others looked confused, he elaborated. "Remember how Anomaly had to read it? She thinks she has to _hear _the words to understand them."

"Try it." Cutter suggested.

"What should I say?"

"Anything. It doesn't matter."

"But it should be something cool. I mean, Anomaly chose the first English word she knew as her name, and…"

"Like this?" Abby interrupted, speaking over the intercom. "Like this?" She repeated.

Red nodded, smiling. "Ittar nak!"

Connor looked amazed. "It worked!"

Lester looked at him. "Very well, then. So that problem's solved. Connor, you teach her the basics, seeing as you did such a wonderful job last time." He waved his hand as though he could really care less.

"I didn't…" Connor started, but Lester was already walking away.


	3. Second Anomaly

Red only had to hear English words twice before she understood them.

It was one of those strange little quirks in language learning; she had to hear it multiple times, and once she knew them, she knew how to spell them, read them, and write them down. Everything was quick and easy.

Connor's throat became sore after a while, so the rest of the team took turns teaching her. All of them were mildly impressed by her ability to learn so quickly; even though they had already seen Anomaly understand the entire English language in a matter of days.

But some nagging doubt began to ruin the perfect illusion. These people _knew _Anomaly. They knew what she was capable of- they were there, for Pete's sake! They were there when it all happened!

So why had Anomaly sent her _here, _of all places, to start a new life? A life _separate _from her family? A life where no one knew her name, or knew what had happened in her history?

She sighed heavily and tried to ignore the thoughts, turning her eyes to Ikeila, who stared up at her. The Florlic puffed out a sigh, seeming bored. One language or another did not matter to her; she only needed to know the emotions behind them.

After a while, a few men with guns came into the room, looking edgy. They gestured for her to follow, and she did as they asked, pointedly eyeing the guns and sighing a disappointed sigh.

As she entered the heart of the ARC, the room where the ADD was, she looked around in wonder. This place was a fairytale. An old ledgend. A myth.

And yet, _here it was. _In front of her very eyes, the ARC, the place of dreams and nightmares, friend and foe.

"Interila." She breathed. Her grandmother had it right; this place was the most incredible thing she'd ever seen.

"English, please." She heard a dry, fragile, exasperated voice say. She recognized the voice, and now recognized the words behind it.

She smiled at him. "Hello, Lester."

"Good to see you speaking our language at last." He eyed Ikeila warily. He'd had some bad experiences with Florlics when Anomaly was here.

She shrugged. "I'm a fast learner." She looked around the room.

Lester cleared his throat pointedly, glaring at Connor.

"Ah. Yes." Connor started awkwardly. Red turned to him expectantly, and he blushed.

"You see, given Anomaly's past… er, _experiences _with the ARC…" Connor tried. "We're not going to… that is to say; we're going to have to…"

Abby stepped in for him. "We want you to move in with us." She completed. Connor looked relieved.

Red raised an eyebrow. "With you?"

"Anomaly always had nightmares." Lester explained. "They tended to make her… somewhat violent. You understand."

Red hated that assumption. 'You understand.' And what if she _didn't?_

But she remained calm as she replied. "I suppose I do."

"So it's settled." Lester said primly.

As he walked out of the room, Red smiled tentatively at Abby and Connor. "Thank you for letting me stay with you." She said softly.

Abby smiled back. "No problem. We have a Florlic, two kids, and a flying lizard. How much more trouble can a future human and another Florlic cause?"

Red grinned.

* * *

Abby and Connor were very tense when they called out Andrew and Artalia. Red, on the other hand, was perfectly relaxed.

Andrew had grown into a young boy with black hair and brighter eyes than his father. They glittered and sparkled with a hidden curiosity, and a deeper intelligence that would be believed, as he was only a six-year-old boy.

Artalia was a year younger than her brother. Her eyes were a deep brown, and her hair a light blonde that fell past her shoulders. The two were obviously very close, as they came out together, not racing against each other, but talking until they reached their parents.

"Artalia, Andrew, this is Red." Abby introduced her.

Andrew looked at Red curiously. "Ickt Noktri tana?" He asked.

Red smiled. "Terlo. Tellaks Teessan."

The boy nodded, his curiosity satisfied.

Connor, on the other hand, looked completely mystified. "How did he…? I didn't… I didn't _teach _him that!"

Red chuckled. "One of my grandmother's old tricks. Said she was coming back to your time every so often and teaching Andrew Artalian."

Connor gawked at his son for a moment and Abby shot Red a death glare, as though it was all her fault Anomaly had done this.

Red shrugged. "He wanted to learn."

Abby sighed. "Of course he did." She grumbled.

Andrew smiled apologetically at his mother. She looked at him, then slowly smiled back, unable to stay mad at him for very long.

* * *

Lester paced, his hands clasped firmly behind his back. He was walking in circles.

He'd told Abby and Connor to keep tabs on the girl, to keep him informed on her actions, but they trusted Anomaly too much to really be firm about his instructions. They couldn't help but see the child who had become their friend when they looked at her, differences or not.

Because Red, like Anomaly, was _different._ She was strange.

It was written all over her face! Lester paced even faster. He didn't trust her so completely, not yet. As far as he knew, Anomaly only ever had one child. Arklio, the council member who had caused so much grief. And if Red was _his _daughter…!

Who knew what she'd inherited from him? Certainly the temper. The anger, the fury.

The whole family had that rage. That peculiar sense of resentment to the world that they seemed to share.

But Anomaly had a _reason._ He couldn't possibly see the reason behind Red's anger. Perhaps the red pattern had something to do with it. If she was always mocked and teased for it…

He sighed. There was nothing he could do. He just had to sit back and wait it out.

* * *

Red stared out into the dark.

It was only midnight. Late enough for everyone else to be asleep, but Red didn't really need as much sleep as the others.

Once Andrew, Artalia, Abby and Connor had fallen asleep, Red had taken Conorao and Ikeila out of the house. The two Florlics had instantly liked each other, and were currently play-fighting behind Red as she kept walking.

No normal human's eye could have penetrated the darkness outside, but Red was able to see fairly clearly. Her black eyes blended with the night around her, and only a tell-tale glimmer announced their presence. They darted back and forth, observing everything around her.

The night air was cold, crisp, and clean. Her breath came out in a small cloud, but there was no wind to blow it away.

Finally, she came to the spot she wanted. It was a small hill that gave a nice view of the city lights, along with some of the greenery below.

Red had never seen so much green in all of her life. The grass rippled in waves of emerald and jade, dark and light hues that she had been unaware of until now. There was just _so much _of it! The plants were everywhere, trees and bushes and grass, all completely _green._

She was so used to the sand of her home. The desert sparkled with a wonderful beauty, it was true, but this was something different. Something new.

And it was almost _warm. _Compared to Artalia, and the desert outside the walls, the cold night air was _nothing. _

She laughed. She couldn't help it. The two Florlics looked at her curiously, unable to understand her sudden change in mood.

She'd done it! She'd actually done it! She was away from Artalia, she was in the ARC! She had a name of her own, now! She was no longer just "Anomaly's granddaughter', or 'Arklio's child' or 'Tanai's kid.' She was _Red._

She spun around in a circle, her eyes focused on the black night sky. Pinpricks of stars winked at her from across space.

She smiled at them. What was it her father had said? Something about stars being in her blood.

Right now, she could believe it.

* * *

Red was an even bigger nuisance than her grandmother.

She was sitting down, staring across the table at Lester, who was desperately trying to get some answers out of her. Her fingers were toying with the tiny machines that had already taken twenty-nine photographs of each room, along with three minutes of video. These cameras kept crawling around the room, taking pictures of Lester with annoyingly obvious flashes, and poking at his chair, curious as to how difficult it would be to dismantle with Lester still on it.

Ikeila seemed used to the tiny machines. Every so often, she would snap at one that came too close, but she seemed otherwise content with their presence.

However, her master's impatience was beginning to affect her. Red would have paced the room if she had been allowed, and probably would have anyway if Ikeila hadn't kept her emotions completely calm, trying to balance out the boredom.

Lester seemed unbearably smug as he talked to her, though his irritation was beginning to seep through. He began talking through his teeth at more frequent intervals, and was constantly reminding himself to keep a straight face.

"We need your real age, Red."

"I told you! I'm twenty-one!"

"I doubt that."

"Didn't Anomaly explain this to you already? She was twenty-three at fourteen, why wouldn't I be twenty-one at twelve?"

"So you're twelve."

"No, you Kertan! I'm twenty-one!"

He sighed heavily. "We'll compromise. Fifteen?"

"In your dreams."

"Eighteen?" He asked warily. He looked at her. There was no way she would pass off as eighteen if someone came looking.

"No. Twenty-one."

He gritted his teeth. "_Anomaly _knew how to _compromise._" He informed her darkly.

Red's eyes narrowed, and Lester's chair collapsed.

He cried out and the small cameras skittered out of the way quickly, making a noise that sounded suspiciously like snickering.

Red walked over next to his head, staring down at him. "_Don't _compare me to _her._" She snapped.

She walked over to the door, the cameras following. She snapped the door handle in one, quick movement, then started walking out the door.

"Red!" Lester called. "We're not done here!"

"Oh, I think we are." Red said smoothly, striding out the door.

Cutter met her with a raised eyebrow and a disappointed look. She almost wiped it clean off his face, but kept her temper in check.

She sighed heavily and walked back into the room, crushing the side so that it would stay in place without the handle.

"All right, Lester. What else?"

Lester had taken her chair. He glared at her, and she sat down on the floor.

"We need to know any… dissimilarities between yourself and Anomaly."

"Why?"

"Because we know about her. The technology-control, the anomaly-control, the manipulation of electricity, the empathy. But we don't know anything about you."

Red thought about this for a long minute, then replied, "I'm a technopath, like her, but a little… stronger. And yes, I'm empathic. And I manipulate electricity."

"And the anomaly control?"

She paused, her eyes glittering with unshed tears. They always came with this subject, along with a natural instinct to defend herself.

It was a particularly touchy subject, after all.

Finally, she sighed and said. "No. No, I can't control anomalies."

Her hand curled into a claw as she waited for the inevitable, "Preposterous! Of course you can control anomalies!" Or worse, the rejection, the command to leave and never return. She would be no use to them; this was, after all, the _Anomaly _Research Center.

But he said nothing; just wrote a quick note on his paper. "Um-hmm." He affirmed. "Very well. You may go."

She stared at him. Nothing. There was _nothing. _

These people had seen what Anomaly did! They knew that she could open anomalies so massive they dwarfed all others! They knew how _powerful _she was!

And they knew that Red was her granddaughter.

And yet, they didn't seem to _care _that she couldn't open anomalies. It didn't seem to _matter._

Red blinked.

"You can go now." Lester said, neatly stacking his papers and standing. He walked out of the room, leaving her behind.

She stared at Ikeila. The Florlic seemed as confused as she was.

Dazed, Red pulled herself to her feet. The cameras followed, with a little help from Ikeila, who pushed any that fell behind forward with her nose.

She kept walking, into the heart of the ARC, where the ADD was held. She watched everything.

And suddenly, she knew. She knew why her grandmother had sent her here. Why she thought the ARC was the best home for her.

Because they _didn't _assume.

She felt her heart stutter happily. She thought about dancing, right then and there, but kept it under control. She had always kept her emotions guarded; no reason to stop now.

But, inside, she was rejoicing. No one here would look at her strangely when she couldn't open an anomaly. No one here would care if she wasn't able to.

No one really _cared _about all of that. She was Anomaly's granddaughter, and therefore she was part of the team.

She smiled and sighed contently. This could work out very nicely for her…


	4. Compared

Andrew wasn't focusing on anything in particular. His bright eyes were somewhat glazed as he stared into a distance that didn't truly exist.

His thoughts were scattered, but most were centered on the little Artalian he knew. He was working to try and improve it slightly before Red came back.

His little nails scratched at a spot on his skin. It was burning, ever so slightly.

The burning effect intensified slowly as he kept staring into space. It was on his face, and his hand, and three spots on his arm.

He mumbled something in irritation, taking a look at his hand. In the space between his thumb and index finger on the top of his hand was a small, perfect circle of red. Unlike the rest of his skin, this patch looked irritated and dry, almost like a fresh layer, exposed to the harsh elements of the world before completely ready.

He whimpered slightly, and looked at the spots on his arms, where similar phenomena were occurring.

He raced to a mirror, where he caught sight of his reflection. He gasped in horror.

Surrounding his face was a patch of dry, irritated skin. He stroked it gently, wincing as the movement caused pain to lance through him. It was almost a distinguishable pattern of spikes and swirls, but he was unable to tell exactly what it was meant to be.

He stared in absolute shock, wondering what he should do. A tear rolled down his cheek, stinging the dry area without mercy.

His vision blurred, and he began to feel dizzy. He collapsed to his hands and knees, gasping for air. The room was getting stuffy and incredibly hot, and the little boy began to sweat heavily.

He fell even further to the floor, his cheek pressed against the cold ground. He coughed once, twice, and a final time.

Darkness enveloped him, and he remembered no more.

* * *

Though he would never admit it, Lester sorely missed the days when Anomaly would dismantle his chair.

He'd been constantly on alert after a while, and she'd resorted to other measures. Some of these involved a fish, a woolly mammoth, previously chewed gum, and a golf club. Eventually, he came to accept that his chair would collapse under him if he ever sat down.

But he had truly missed that, simply because he missed the person who did it. Had Red attempted the same thing, he would have regarded it as a mockery of the strange relationship he had with Anomaly.

These days, he was no longer on alert. He could sit down with ease, but it somehow unnerved him. He wouldn't have a strange, future-human around to help him when he needed her most. He wouldn't have a- dare he say it? - friend.

So he sat down like he always did, and promptly found himself falling to the ground, parts of his chair clattering around him.

He grumbled and pulled himself to his feet, muttering a few harsh words about what he was going to do to Red for this unspeakable crime against him and chairs everywhere.

It was then that he heard the chuckle. The faint, soft, gentle, all-too-familiar laugh that made his ears prick.

He whirled around, to find Anomaly standing behind him, smiling broadly.

Despite how well Anomaly had aged, she was still showing signs of her long years. Her short blonde hair had very faint hints of grey, and the area around her eyes was wrinkled slightly. But, at fifty years old, she looked fairly well for her age.

"You have no idea how much I've missed that." She grinned.

In that moment, it was as though she had never left. Lester could not help but smile back.

"We've all missed you, Anomaly." He admitted.

She gave him a quick hug. He knew better than to protest, but he did anyway.

She smiled at him. "So, how's my darling little granddaughter doing?"

"Red?" Lester responded. "Well, she's settling in. Doing better than you were." He snorted.

Anomaly laughed. "Well, _that's _not hard." She nodded agreeably. "How's the Florlic?"

"Fine, fine. Red's a little… temperamental, though. She's already broken a door. Twice."

Anomaly chuckled. "Well, what do you expect? She's _my _granddaughter."

There was silence for a minute as the two of them looked out of the window, watching the others from above.

"She'll be all right." Anomaly whispered quietly, more to herself, it seemed, then to Lester.

He looked at her. "I assume you don't want us saying anything about the fact that she, unlike you, can't control anomalies?"

She looked at him, wide-eyed.

He raised a hand to calm her fears before they could truly begin. "Relax. I've said nothing. The others don't seem to mind, but it _was _useful having that particular trick."

Anomaly sighed. "She's never been able to."

"Something to do with the red pattern, I take it?"

Anomaly stared at him. "Since when were _you _so insightful?"

He rolled his eyes, abruptly changing into the 'same old Lester'. "I _noticed _it, that's all. It would have been _easier _if she _did _have it, but…"

"But you'll have to make do." Anomaly interrupted. "She's brilliant, Lester. And no one on our side of the anomaly has dared to even give her a chance to prove it. Red has… abilities. Abilities that even _we _can't understand. She's a technopath to the highest degree, and an empath nearly equal in strength to a Loch Ness Monster."

Lester paused. "Then why are you letting her come _here?_"

"Because she _needs _the ARC." Anomaly looked suddenly battle-weary. Each line began to show on her face, etched in from so many years of running and fighting. A haunted quality entered her eyes, much like the look she'd had as a child. "I came to the ARC with nothing, Lester. No family, no future, no life, and no hope. Everyone I knew either hated me or betrayed me. And I left the ARC with everything back again. A husband. A child. A family. A life.

"Red _needs _to have her life fixed. She needs to be in a place that needs her as well. Because, quite honestly, I don't think anywhere else can handle her."

There was an even longer pause this time. The two just stood in silence, saying nothing.

Finally, Lester sighed. "What? Did you think we were just going to send her back?" He chuckled, shaking his head. "No. She's stuck with us now."

Anomaly smiled at him. "Thank you."

* * *

It was late in the day when they finally arrived back at the home of Abby and Connor.

As soon as her foot passed through the door, Red let out a horrible, blood-curdling scream, collapsing to the ground.

She barely took a breath as she screamed, long and loud. The ear-splitting shriek pierced the night around them, ripping through the darkness and shredding the world around them.

Abby and Connor were at her side in a second, but she tried to blow them off. The Florlics were circling her, whimpering and pawing desperately at their ears, as though the scream was hurting them more than anything in the world.

"Get… to… Andrew!" Red gasped out, before releasing another desperate cry.

Abby and Connor exchanged a panicked look before running to find their son.

They found him on the ground. There was a strange irritation on his face and hand, and he was unconscious.

Abby all but screamed herself. She lifted her son off the ground and placed him on the couch, terror clouding her eyes.

Red pushed past them. Her skin was deathly pale, her eyes ringed in dark circles. Sweat glistened on her skin as she shoved them aside, pressing her forehead to the boy's hand.

She sobbed onto his hand, whispering a few fast words in Artalian that Connor could not catch through his worry and fear.

"A needle." She gasped out. "Get me a needle!"

Connor and Abby looked at her as though she'd lost her mind.

"IF YOU WANT HIM TO LIVE, GET ME THE NEEDLE!" Red screeched. She collapsed on the ground, crying out in agony, her voice high-pitched and horrible.

"WE DON'T HAVE ONE!" Connor replied, panicked.

Red muttered a few more words in Artalian; these Connor caught, but had no desire to repeat. She pulled the knife from her belt and sliced it through her own hand.

She whispered a quick apology to Andrew as she opened a small area of skin on his arm. It was only a small cut, barely visible, but she flinched as though it was the worst thing she could be made to do.

"What are you _doing?_" Abby demanded, hysterical.

"_SHUT UP!_" Red snapped back.

As Abby and Connor watched, small glitters of metal traveled out of Red's hand, crawling slowly to Andrew's arm and into the incision she'd made. After a moment, the cut disappeared, healing behind the small metal objects.

Red exhaled a deep sigh of relief as the cut on her own hand closed.

Everyone watched anxiously as the irritation on Andrew's face slowly disappeared. His breathing steadied after a moment, and everyone relaxed.

"Nanobots." Red explained. "Work wonders if you get them right; explode in your face if you do it wrong. My father used to yell at me for experimenting them in my own bloodstream." She laughed without humor. "Good thing I never listened."

The Florlics whimpered again, and Ikeila nudged Red's hand. The Artalian girl looked tiredly to her pet, stroking her head slowly.

"What _was_ that?" Connor asked quietly.

Red paused. "I'm not sure." She lied.

"But it's gone now, right?" Abby asked.

"I think so." Red replied. "No way to be sure until…" She trailed off.

"Until it happens again?" Abby guessed, quite accurately. Red nodded.

The two parents looked anxiously at their son. Red slowly stole out of the room, making certain to remain absolutely quiet until she made it out of the house.

Once outside, she started to run. She snarled out a few words in Artalian that aren't normally used around polite company, her legs propelling her forwards, faster and faster.

She made it back to the ARC in only a few minutes. With an angry wave of her arm, the security system linked with her, understood her intentions, and disarmed itself so quickly sparks flashed.

Red hardly seemed to notice as the doors swung open helplessly. She marched straight to the ADD, encountering very few people on the way and dealing them in the fastest manner she knew; rendering them unconscious.

Her fingers flew across the keyboard, but it wasn't fast enough. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, they were glowing, numbers and data flashing across them in a burst of her computerized fury.

Her hands became the keyboard, and pictures, numbers, and information was quickly and easily sorted through her mind as her peculiar connection with the ADD intensified.

"It can't be possible." The part of her that retained its humanity whispered the words. "Andrew can't have it, he _can't._"

She swore again in Artalian and disconnected herself from the system. These computers were less advanced than she would have liked.

A bitter, horrible sense of rejection and anger flooded through her once more. She felt her cheeks and ears burn, though there was no one here to witness her embarrassment.

_If Anomaly was here, she wouldn't have this problem._

She snarled in rage, an electric bolt flying across the room and causing a large black mark. Of course she wouldn't. She was_ Anomaly._ She could open the largest anomalies known to their world, and her worthless, _pathetic _granddaughter couldn't even _look _into the future to save a _friend._

Ikeila walked slowly into the ARC, whimpering. Red's emotions were overwhelming her slowly.

"Then _go _if you don't like it!" Red raged at her Florlic.

The winged dog stumbled back, surprised at the anger in her master's tone. She whimpered, pleading with Red to see sense in her own way.

But, at this moment, Red could not be reasoned with. Twelve years of trying to live up to (and, in her father's case, live down) her family's reputation, twelve years of anger, twelve years of self-loathing and eventually hatred at her family was building up to this one, single, horrific moment, and woe be to all those who got in her way.

Every single object in the ARC that had any sort of wiring inside it was dismantled in an instant. All technology fell to her command. Sparks flew and fires crackled from them. Her cameras came to her side, a small army with no one to fight. The world fell to pieces as the lights flickered and died. The security system roared back to life with a vengeance, intensifying greatly as wires fell into place, guns attached themselves to targeting systems, and cameras' focus sharpened.

In short, the entire ARC was upgraded in an instant.

"Compare me to Anomaly _now._" Red spat, her voice filled with a deep, hideous malice. It unnerved and almost frightened Ikeila, who whined and backed up until she was shivering against the wall.

Red didn't seem to notice her Florlic's discomfort. Her eyes glowed once more with the information from a thousand computers, linked across the world. Every computer in the world turned on in an instant, but their monitors were blank, so as to keep their owners unaware of the power surge.

And slowly, gently, and surely, these systems poked and prodded at the fabric of time and space. They caused a rip, a perfect anomaly, just large enough for a certain data stream to travel through.

Red smiled with a vicious triumph as she searched through the information she needed.

She never noticed Ikeila.

The Florlic, overwhelmed with the hatred, the carelessness, the anger, the malice, and the horrific pain Red was feeling, curled up on the ground. She closed her eyes.

She looked so fragile and delicate, something as yet unknown to this particular Florlic. Her wings folded over her back, and she took in one rattling, painful breath, letting it out in a soft sigh. Her frame looked thin and breakable, as opposed to the great and powerful creature she had been only moments ago.

She looked to her master one more time, wishing she could just look at her. But Red never turned; she was too occupied with her own thoughts.

Ikeila closed her eyes again, sighing heavily. It came out in a horrible sort of whimper, but the sound was ignored.

The pain was too much for the Florlic. She took a few more painful, rasping breaths. Her heart stuttered once, twice, and a third time, each time seeming so impossible.

And so, as Ikeila sighed a final time, Red never saw the death of her closest friend.


	5. Legend

**A/N: Sorry for the late update!**

The city of Artalis has many legends that live or have lived in its walls. Tanai, the woman who gave her life to protect the city from Predators. Arklio, the traitor to his family that eventually saw his own faults. Sam, the man who similarly betrayed his family, only to realize how wrong he had been, and whose hands he had trusted his life to. Kierto, the man who had waited years, watching the child who would become his wife in a different time grow up. And, of course, Anomaly, the first person in a thousand years to believe that the council was wrong about something, and the child who brought the city's government to its knees, destroying it and rebuilding it.

So, it was naturally assumed that great things could be expected of Arklio's and Tanai's daughter.

But there was one celebrity in this family that no one took into account, simply because he was forgotten to time and rumors. Of course, there were rumors of his existence, but rumors are never to be believed, never to be trusted, and eventually forgotten.

If anyone asked Anomaly about this man, she would deny his existence and close the door, smiling tensely and bristling.

If anyone asked Kierto about him, they would have a similar reaction, albeit a much more political one. He would smile nicely, and speak in such a manner that no one knew they were insulted until three in the morning the next day.

If anyone asked Arklio, he would reply in much the manner Kierto would, but would also proceed to say that rumors were nothing but rumors, and if anyone else spread them, then they were just as guilty as the one who started them, and should keep their big mouths shut.

But they would also be lying.

Because this man, surrounded in mystery and rumor, _did _exist. His family did not deny this because they were ashamed; certainly Anomaly would have loved to have him back, and would parade him in the street with as much pride in her eyes as a person could possibly have. Arklio would welcome him with open arms, and Kierto would do much the same.

For Kierto and Anomaly loved their second son, and Arklio cared very much for his twin brother.

But he loved the desert. He loved the cold, and the hideous winds. He loved the creatures, he loved the freedom, and he hated the walls that surrounded the city of Artalis.

His name was Arkran. In English, _born of war. _

His name was misleading, however, for he did not have the true battle in his heart until he was two weeks old, the day he was named. And, he was called such because of what he saw.

Arkran once looked very much like his twin. Only their pattern varied, and then only slightly. While Arklio's held more spikes in his, Arkran's swirled slightly in areas that did not on his brother's. But after the 'incident', as it was frequently called by many of the Artalians, he began to look much smaller than Arklio. Certainly, his figure shrunk, until he was gaunt and much paler than he had once been. He was thin and wiry, but what he lacked in the strength his brother had he more than made up for in speed.

Arkran was frequently known as a 'trouble child'; he had been worse than his mother as a baby. He was also brilliant, and knew how to crawl by the time he was only nine days old, while it normally took at least eleven, and at most sixteen.

Because of his curious and often mischievous nature, Arkran had disappeared three times before he was named. Before the day that changed everything. Each time, Anomaly and Kierto would search for their son, trying not to panic but still having fear deep in their hearts, each time promising that they would build an extra wall if they must, if only to keep him inside Artalis until he could learn why he needed to stay.

On the day that everything changed, Arkran had managed once again to get out of the walls, and into the desert. However, this time, he'd had some help from a Florlic, a new one that was meant to be his for the rest of his life. And he had been flying above the city, and not on the ground where he was expected.

He looked towards the desert below, and after a few miles, was shocked to see it stained with red. Curious, he flew onwards, while his Florlic grew uneasy.

Eventually, they arrived at a scene that could not be seen from the skies, and Arkran ordered his reluctant Florlic downwards. What he saw when he landed took two things from him; his sight, and his sanity.

It was a war. An all-out war between two cities. It had often been speculated that there _were _no other cities, that Artalis lived in a protective bubble for no reason. But Arkran could tell them otherwise as he stared, out onto the battlefield.

He started to cry as he saw thousands fall before knives and swords and electricity. He sobbed, and screamed for them to stop, but they could not hear the screams of a single child in the sound of their own war.

And Arkran tried to stop it. He truly did. But in doing so, he only threw himself closer to the fight, closer to danger and closer to his own death. Still he persisted, screaming and crying, begging. He was a child, and what do children know of war, other than that it was the business of adults?

Arkran cried horribly, but only acquired a sore throat for all of his troubles. He watched helplessly, as human and their Florlics were slain. Thousands of emotions rippled in the tiny boy's mind, until he could take no more. He could barely distinguish his own Florlic's pain as it was mistaken for an enemy and destroyed as well.

And then he saw it.

A man against a woman, fighting in what was clearly to the death. And Arkran's childish mind, horrified at the pain and wanting to cling to what was familiar and safe, perceived the woman to be Anomaly, his mother and the only woman he truly trusted.

Arkran ran towards them, wanting to be home, wanting to be safe, just a child who wanted his mommy.

And then the man's knife came down, and she collapsed to the floor.

Arkran stared at him, screaming. The man's face was twisted in an unbelievable picture of hatred and malice. A face so cruel it could only come from the worst of nightmares, the most horrible of dreams.

Arkran's sanity was already taken, wiped away by the pain around him. But now his sight was taken as well, as his mind refused to accept what it saw. His vision, while his eyes were perfectly healthy, turned black, and would likely remain so for the rest of his life.

There was one good thing in Arkran's fate, however. The man saw the child, screaming and now blind, and realized that he was only a baby, maybe a few weeks old.

And that he did not belong to either city.

His expression of hate vanished, to be replaced with sorrow, compassion, and regret. He instantly lifted the small child from the ground and took him away from the battlefield.

He was noticed by many, who pointed it out to others, and eventually all fighting came to a halt as they realized what he was holding. They all looked around, both cities frozen as they stared at the baby boy in the man's arms.

For a moment, all was still on the battlefield. Then, one man cleared his throat and asked in a horrible, remorseful whisper,

"What were we fighting about again?"

And the strange thing was, out of all the people who had come, of all those who had previously been so ready to die for their cause, no one there could remember.

Arkran was returned to Artalis, to Anomaly and Kierto. It was quickly understood that his once brilliant and cunning mind was gone, and that his vision had deserted him. He, however, was much relieved to find that Anomaly was safe and well, and he did not let go of her hand for eight months following.

The two cities, which had once been at war, never fought again. In fact, they became allies, and eventually combined the two of their territories, making them the largest city in the world.

And so, by the time he was two weeks old, Arkran was famous, just like the rest of his family.

But he never felt comfortable in the city walls. Eventually, they began to feel like a prison to him, and barely a day would go by before he would break down crying.

When Anomaly realized the problem, she immediately told Kierto, and even discussed it with Arklio, who was only two and a half at the time. They decided that, if Arkran wanted to, he should live outside the walls, in the desert, with an abnormally large number of Florlics to protect him.

When Arkran was informed of the plan, he agreed instantly.

And so it was set up. Krena, one of Kierto's Florlics, was given to him, along with Tenra and Tono, Kesea's children, leaving Arklio with Rona, the last.

He was also given three more, Selora, Telena and Sorrtra, and a lesson of survival in the desert, even while blind. Word was spread that he had been killed by a Predator, and no more was ever said to the family about their blind and insane son. No one knew; even Tanai, or Lauranai, when she was born years later.

No one knew. No one was told.

* * *

Arkran sat, his five Florlics surrounding him. His ears pricked as something stepped outside of his makeshift home.

"Hi, mom." He whispered.

Anomaly came over to him and placed her hand on his. "Hey, Arkran." She whispered back. "How are you?"

He smiled happily. "Good."

Tono licked Anomaly's hand as she sighed heavily. "You remember how I told you that you had a niece? Well…" she sighed again. "She's gone to the ARC."

Arkran giggled, not understanding what was happening.

Anomaly gently kissed his forehead. "Is that funny?" She chuckled. "Am I funny, sweetheart? Am I?"

Arkran started to laugh. He was so like a child, as though he was still frozen in the mindset of the little boy who had seen a war.

Anomaly smiled at him, though he could not see it. His hand gently felt her face, and she allowed it to, so that he could have a picture of what she looked like.

After a moment, he stopped. "You're sad."

Anomaly paused, then smiled weakly. "Just a little."

"No." Arkran shook his head fiercely. "You're so sad." His sightless eyes locked on hers with amazing precision. "And scared."

Anomaly thought about this for a moment, then sat down next to her son. "Yes." She replied finally. "Yes, Arkran, I'm very sad. And I'm very, very scared. My granddaughter's gone to the ARC, and I'm not going to see her as much as I used to and…" She let out a small groan of frustration.

Arkran placed his head on her shoulder and started to hum, an old song that Anomaly taught him once, a song she once sang in the desert.

Anomaly had to smile. In her own way, she had invented that song. It had been an old one when she was born, but then she was sent back in time, to a time when no one had ever heard of it. And it had caught on very quickly.

He started to sing it, gently, his voice soft and lonely.

"_When summer days,_

_And skies of blue, _

_Give away their shine._

_When time itself will hold its breath,_

_And the world will fall down._

_When darkness comes, and flames of green,_

_Will dance upon the land._

_Then you will know, then you will see._

_My hour is at hand…"  
_

He trailed off, humming tunelessly as his train of thought was lost.

Anomaly sat contentedly, listening to her son until he spoke up again, suddenly and seemingly randomly.

"She's so terrified, mom." He whimpered. "She's lost and scared and alone… and so mad, so horrified, so hideous…" Tears began to roll down his cheeks. "She hates us." He cried. "She hates us all, and…" His blind eyes turned to Anomaly. "Oh…" It was a pathetic little cry, a tiny plea in a single word, full of realization and grief. "Why does she hate herself, mom? There's no one in the world, no one in the universe itself that she hates more."

Anomaly turned to him, worry creasing the wrinkles by her eyes. "Who, Arkran? Who are you talking about?"

Arkran sobbed, clutching his mother's shoulders for support. The Florlics whined and began to pace, somehow managing to not run into each other.

"She has stars in her blood." Arkran went on. "And how can anyone hate the stars?"

* * *

Arklio paced slowly. The house was very quiet these days. And so incredibly lonely.

"Knock knock…" Came a soft voice. It was old and frail, but there was a hint of its former strength within it. "Arklio? It's Sarto. Can I come in?"

Arklio froze, then immediately went to allow the man inside. "Of course, of course…" He said, opening the door and gesturing to a seat.

Sarto smiled and sat down. His hair was grey, and his face was lined with many wrinkles, but his blue eyes were bright, and he had a sweet, happy smile that was incredibly contagious.

Arklio smiled back at the man. He was in his hundreds by now, not expected to live much longer, but you wouldn't know it to look at him.

Arklio sat across from him. "If you wanted to talk to Anomaly, she'll be back in a few hours, and I can send her to you house…"

But Sarto was shaking his head. "It's not my daughter I'm concerned about right now." He replied calmly. "It's you."

Arklio raised an eyebrow.

Sarto cleared his throat and began slowly. "Arklio, I've seen the way you've acted since Lauranai left. Secluded. Isolated. And a bit temperamental."

Arklio bristled indignantly, but knew far better than to argue with the man. He gestured for him to continue, swallowing back the acidic remark he would have made to anyone younger, and anyone not family.

"I think I understand." Sarto went on. "Indeed, my wife was much the same way when Anomaly was banished. She wanted nothing to do with anyone. The way she saw it, she had already lost one of the most important people in her life; who could say that she wouldn't lose everyone else as well?"

Arklio paused.

Sarto swallowed before continuing, "I want you to know that we are still here. And Lauranai is here as well; if you just want to see her." He smiled, chuckling softly. "You could drop in, surprise her. It may embarrass her, but that's what parents are supposed to do, isn't it?"

Arklio found himself smiling weakly.

There was a pause as Sarto waited patiently for Arklio to think about this.

"Did you ever want to visit Anomaly?" Arklio blurted out suddenly. "I mean, when she'd been banished, and was in the desert…?"

Sarto's pale, metallic blue eyes softened. "Oh, yes."

"And did you?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Why?"

"Because of you." He sighed deeply. "I saw her, Arklio. In your eyes. And I think… I think I realized it. I think I knew you were her son before I found out. I think I always knew. I just couldn't understand it."

"It isn't a very easy thing _to _understand." Arklio replied.

"No." Sarto smiled gently. "It's not."

There was another pause.

"Also, I couldn't leave Sam." Sarto finally spoke up again. "I saw what the decision did to him. It was eating him alive. There were days…" He sighed, shaking his head slowly. "There were days where I would find him, just sitting there. All alone. And you could see it, in his eyes, that it was taking everything he had to keep him from screaming. To keep him from tearing down the walls, destroying everything in sight and running out there to find his sister."

He looked down, then spoke again, his voice the softest of whispers.

"I never even told Anomaly…" He trailed off, then began again, a little more forcibly this time. "I never told her, but there was this one time. One time that he completely snapped." His eyes grew distant, as though he could see Sam before him, his control gone, leaving behind something hideous and hated.

"One night… the night after he… sentenced her to death, he went out into the desert. And I followed him. He was looking everywhere, almost as though… as though his hope that Anomaly would be there would bring her running. And he went up this hill…"

Arklio could see it, in his mind's eye, as Sarto went on. He could see the moonlight, washing over the sands, a lonely figure running through them, sending sand scattering on the wind behind him as he raced forwards…

"And he dropped to his knees. He just… dropped. And he screamed." Sarto shivered. "He screamed for almost two minutes straight, barely even breathing. And when I thought he was done, when I thought he couldn't scream any longer…" Tears welled up in the older man's eyes. "He screamed again.

"It was the most horrible, heart-wrenching, blood-curdling thing I've ever heard. And there were tears, pouring down his face, and he cried, and he cried…"

Arklio could almost hear the screaming, the broken child crying horribly in the moonlight. He could almost hear Sam, lamenting everything he'd done, mourning for the loss of his sister in the only way he could, the only way he had left.

"And then he kept crying out, 'What have I done? What have I _done?_' And he kept talking to her, talking to Anomaly, even though she wasn't there to talk back, even though she couldn't speak to him. And he begged her to come back, he told her he'd be an outcast too, just like she'd asked him too, just like she wanted, because he was sorry, so very sorry, and he hated himself for it, and he hated what he'd done, and he wished he could change it…

"And then he started to crackle with electricity. He lost every sense of control he had, emotion and technological. The chip fused, Arklio." Sarto looked down. "No one ever knew this, but… before you… before the knife… before he died, he was already sick. The chip had fused. His pattern was turning purple. Sam was a dead man walking, just like Anomaly."

Arklio stared into space, trying to grasp the idea of how much pain Sam must have felt for his chip to fuse in the way it had.

"I just…" Arklio swallowed. "I can't imagine…" He sighed. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologize." Sarto said fiercely. "You've done that enough, Arklio. There's no need for it anymore."

There was a long pause, as both of them retreated to their thoughts of a much colder, much darker, and much more hostile past.

**A/N: In case anyone was wondering; yes, the song mentioned is the one Anomaly was singing in chapter seven of 'What an Anomaly Is.'**


	6. Why

When Red saw Ikeila's limp and lifeless body, she didn't know how to react.

Ikeila had been her best- and often only- friend. To imagine for even a second that she was gone was… unbearable.

So, for a long time, she simply stared, as though waiting for Ikeila to wake again. In fact, this illusion was so strong that she even called out to her a few times.

But the strangest thing of all happened in the minutes, the hours, the lifetimes that she stared at Ikeila.

Red's pattern began to bleed.

Black ink drizzled down the side of her face, which, when looked at closer, was revealed to be simply a much darker shade of crimson. It rolled down in tears from the swirls of scarlet.

She blinked, confused and surprised, then slowly lifted her fingers up to touch her face, which had become suddenly wet. She lowered them so that she could see the cause, and found the red-black ink that shone on her fingers, glistening wetly for a moment, and then fading.

She swallowed, knowing what this meant. The color differed greatly from that of any others; theirs was always purple, which eventually followed into black.

This did not stop her from recognizing the warning that her pattern was issuing to her. Her chip was fused, and would need a new replacement.

For a long time, she stared at the area on her fingers where the red ink had disappeared. What could cause her chip to fuse? The only thing she could think of that could create so much damage in such a short time was an emotion, whether pain or misery or simple, overwhelming joy.

But she had experienced no such emotion…

And then she was sobbing.

She collapsed to the ground, burying her face in Ikeila's fur, her tears rolling onto the limp Florlic. She was _gone. _Ikeila was _dead. _

She only understood this now, only after her chip had fused. The red ink from her pattern stained Ikeila's fur, then disappeared, fading from view.

And Red cried. She wailed; a pathetic, lonely sound that echoed through the empty halls of the ARC, the cry of a ghost.

She _felt _like a ghost. As though she was not real; she was simply haunting the world around her, more of a nuisance than anything else. And those who did not mock her decided instead to fear her. She simply wandered from world to world, time to time, trying to find a home which she believed would never come.

* * *

Lester was bored.

He was more than bored; he was bored to tears, and would literally have been crying from the boredom if he thought he could.

So he did what any other bored man does; he sat down to watch TV. Re-runs, naturally, but it wasn't as though he cared.

He sat on the couch, still wearing that infernal suit, the tie loosened slightly. He'd taken his shoes off, simply because he didn't want to mess up his floor, but otherwise he looked like the same Lester who came into the ARC day after day and dealt with amateurs, along with a twelve-year-old girl with a red pattern.

What a day! He ran his hand across his face, realizing that he was no longer only bored, but exhausted as well. He checked the time; seven o'clock. The time that you wished you could sleep in but knew you couldn't, because then you would wake up early in the morning and be that much more miserable.

He allowed his mind to go completely blank while he watched some sappy soap opera; the first thing on his TV when he turned it on. He would have gagged, but he really couldn't be bothered to find the remote at this moment. Especially when he didn't really care what was on.

It was at this time, when James Lester couldn't decide whether he was bored or exhausted, that a bright light suddenly flared by his couch.

He jumped, all but throwing himself off the chair and to safety behind it. He hid there for a brief moment, grateful that no one he knew had seen his display, then looked over the arm of the chair.

He recognized the face, though it looked paler, gaunter. The eyes were ringed with circles, and the blue pattern was tinted with purple on the edges.

It was also much younger than he remembered. It didn't turn to face him, but stared into the distance, stumbling forwards slowly. Blonde hair flowed down to the figure's shoulders, a length which Lester knew it was never allowed to reach. The clothes were tattered, and there was something he couldn't identify on its chest…

"Anomaly?" He asked, standing, feeling somewhat strange that he now towered over the young girl. "What in the blazes is going on?"

In response, Anomaly turned. Lester's eyes widened in shock as blood trickled down from the corner of her lip. The object he couldn't identify was now thrown into reality in front of him, a sharp, cruel reality that he could not force himself to believe.

It was a knife.

A faint smile danced across the teenager's lips, then she fell forwards.

"Anomaly!" Lester cried out involuntarily, stooping down and catching her in his arms.

Anomaly looked up at him, taking a deep, shuddering breath and whispering out one word in a raspy, tortured voice.

"Why?"

Her metallic blue eyes misted over, and her body fell limp and lifeless. Lester stared at the form in his arms, unable to believe what he'd seen.

"Anomaly?" He asked in a whisper. "You're joking, right? This is a joke…"

Though he would later deny it, a tear rolled down Lester's cheek, and his breath caught in his throat. He held her closer, one final hug that he would normally refuse, closing his eyes tightly, as though hoping this was just a dream, that he would wake up and find Anomaly by him, the adult version he'd grown to care about.

And Lester, the head of the ARC, the man who had once sent this very child to those who would hurt her, the man who had ordered her capture, the man who had wanted nothing to do with her found himself crying over her body.

_Why? _

The word echoed through his mind as he heard something screaming from inside the anomaly in front of him. Something new took the place of his despair. Something hideous and white-hot, something horrible and undeniable. Something dark and nightmarish, something he hadn't considered himself capable of.

Rage. An awful, furious hatred that burned through him, flashed through everything he was. Fury and anger, malice and spite, all tumbled through his mind, coursed through his veins. Something or someone had done this to Anomaly. They had taken her from the world, possibly before she'd even been to the ARC.

And that something or someone was going to pay dearly.

He took Anomaly's knife, which was clenched in her hand, and walked through the anomaly, his eyes blazing.

* * *

The man appeared outside of Jenny's and Nick's house. He had a patch of light blonde hair that swept into his face, shining in the darkness. His face was set in an emotionless, featureless mask. Why he was here, even he could not say. Perhaps they could help. Perhaps they could not. All he could do was hope.

But did he truly hope for this? To do so would condemn him to death. If they fixed everything…

No! He could not think that way, he could not let her go! He was not the selfish child that once sentenced her to a life no one would wish on their worst enemy! He was no longer that wretched, hideous creature that he now despised! He would do anything to bring her back, anything at all! He would die for her, die to save her!

His hand tightened on his knife, and his resolve strengthened with it. Yes. He'd die.

But it was justice, bittersweet and complete. He deserved to die, for what he'd done to her. He absolutely deserved it. Now, it was not only his words that condemned him, but his very actions.

Such an endless paradox, the events that led to his slaughter of her. It shouldn't have happened. And he hated the man who had told him it would.

He hated Nick Cutter.

Another thought had once occurred to him; kill Nick, and it would never happen. But he couldn't. Nick was a friend of hers, and to destroy him… the man hadn't meant anything by revealing that knowledge; he'd just wanted to prepare him, never guessing that his own true, hideous nature would reveal itself.

The man buried his face in his hands. No, Nick Cutter could never have guessed what he'd do with the information given to him. He could never have guessed that he would use it to save his own life, and to take hers.

And how could he have? No man was that horrible. No man was that cruel. No man would have done what he did. Only a coward, a sniveling traitor, a backstabbing _fool _would have done what he had. He was no man; he was a wretched _creature, _a _thing _that came through anomalies and defied explanation.

He had to stop Nick Cutter. Had to stop him from telling him how he died.

It was the only way.

He slipped through the darkness, a creature born of shadows and raised in hatred. His footsteps were perfectly silent; not a sound escaped from him as he moved stealthily towards the door.

He thought about knocking, but decided instead to slip inside. It wasn't as though he'd be noticed; and these people would be used to unexplained things appearing from seemingly the middle of nowhere.

When he found them in the living room, he kept hidden. Their eyes were locked on the TV screen, watching some program he couldn't identify.

He saw the child on the floor and felt his heart melt. She looked up at him, and he brought a finger to his lips in a shushing motion.

She giggled and turned around, peeking over her shoulder to look at him every so often. He couldn't help but smile at her, making silly faces. She let out a shriek of laughter, and it sliced through the air around them.

That was when Nick noticed his daughter's antics.

* * *

Nick Cutter sat next to his wife, watching the TV. On the floor, Claudia (the name had not been his suggestion, but Jenny's, saying that she deserved to exist in some way) was playing happily with a small pile of blocks sitting in her lap.

At one point, she turned and giggled at something. Nick didn't think anything of it; she was always giggling at something. But then she kept looking over her shoulder, laughing at something behind them.

After a moment, the behavior began to unnerve him, until he was about to turn around himself. But then, at that moment, a strange voice said,

"Hello, Nick."

He jumped, whirling around to find the source. His eyes finally found and locked onto the man, who was standing behind him. His metallic blue eyes were all too familiar, as was the bright blue pattern surrounding one of them. Nick himself had never met this man, but he knew in an instant who he was; there was no mistaking him.

His mind flashed through a thousand possibilities of how he could be here, but none of them explained his age. The person before him was a man, not a boy. And Nick knew, without any doubt, that he had died as a teenager; seventeen, maybe eighteen. He'd been much younger than the person before him.

And yet there was no mistaking the pattern on his face; nearly identical to another he'd seen. It was him, beyond a shadow of a doubt.

The man looked at him, his eyes tortured and full of misery. "Please." He pleaded. "You have to help me."

Nick couldn't stop staring. Even Jenny seemed speechless beside him.

Only Claudia seemed unfazed. She stood slowly, offering the man a small doll. He smiled and thanked her quietly, and she giggled, running back to her spot and picking up another one of her toys, trying to show them to him one by one.

When Nick finally managed to speak, he could only get out two words. "You're dead."

The man nodded once. "Yeah. I should be."

There was another pause as Claudia handed the man a block of wood. He didn't notice her for a moment, so she threw it at him instead.

"Hey!" He protested. She laughed and hid behind a chair.

While he was temporarily distracted, Jenny's hand found Nick's and clutched it tightly. "Is that…?" She whispered.

"I think so." He replied.

The man obviously heard them, but he said nothing, choosing instead to laugh with Claudia while they talked everything over.

"But he's… he's dead!" She breathed.

Despite all of this, when the man turned back to them, they could not deny it.

The stranger was Sam.


End file.
